Choose a Whole-House Humidifier and Lessen Your Flu Risk

A whole-house humidifier can help a great deal during the winter, helping to not only keep your indoor air comfortable but also to prevent you and your family from contracting the flu and other seasonal viruses.

Research has found that the flu virus actually thrives in the cold, dry air of winter, making you much more susceptible to illness. Here’s how a whole-house humidifier can improve your health.

While the heating system in your house makes it warmer, it also dries out the air, which causes nasal passages to dry out and become irritated. Without the ideal humidity level indoors, which should range from 30 to 50 percent, flu viruses live longer outside of the body and find their way into your system much more easily via your dried out nasal passages.

A whole-house humidifier that can be integrated into your existing HVAC system works by introducing water vapor into the air, lowering your flu risk by improving your interior humidity level. The humidifier is attached to your water supply and draws water directly, turns it into water vapor and adds it to the heated air.

Increased humidity in the air actually reduces the life span of the flu virus and makes it less likely to attack your moist nasal passages.

Humidification also reduces your heating bills, as moist air actually contributes to warmth, allowing you to set the temperature a little bit lower.